mga707

I finally did the old US 80 road trip across the 1927 Gillespie Dam Bridge today. That certainly is a neat old bridge. I hope it stays open to vehicular traffic. We stopped on both ends and I walked onto the bridge, searching in vain for some sort of a 'data plate' or construction information marker. The Gila River under the bridge was flowing quite nicely today, and their were people out fishing up by the 'broken' Gillespie Dam. The spring snowmelt from the White Mountains is coming down the Salt River and into the Gila, as the upstream I-10 Gila crossing between PHX and TUS was it's usual dry self! When I have the time I'll try to post some pictures in the gallery, but I think I may go out to the (much closer to my SE Tucson home base) old Cienega Creek bridge (1921 vintage, IIRC) on the old US80 segment between Tucson and Benson and snap some photos of that bridge as well. The two old 80 bridges make a nice pair!

Practically, yep. Moved here in late 1959, when I was slightly less than two years old. No, I wasn't doing the driving then! Your car cooler description is perfect, and that's why I put it out there as a possibility. The device in the picture looks as though it could have a wind turbine atop the water can. The thing about swamp coolers is that they are absolutely great out here in from April through June, when it is hot and the humidity is usually in the single digits (like it was today--6 or 7%!). At that time of the year they actually cool the air better than air conditioning. Where they lose their effectiveness is later in the summer, from mid-July through mid-September, when the monsoon thunderstorms normally stir every afternoon and the humidity is in the 25 to 50% range. What you don't want then is more humidity. After mid-September it usually dries out again and swamp coolers are fine again through October.

Those are some great pictures, both yours and the old ones. Amazing how good both buildings still look, especially the larger 'ranch house' building. Looks like it had been occupied until pretty recently. I agree with your speculation that the station had recently switched from Shell to chevron at the time the postcard picture was taken. The "Chevron Gasoline" sign on the roof looks brand new. As far as the contraption attached to the passenger door of the car, I'll bet it is a 'car cooler'. Back in the pre-AC days, one could buy these. They were basically little swamp coolers for cars. I never personally experienced them, for although I grew up with swamp coolers (Tucson in the 1960s), we always had dealer-added under-dash air conditioners in our cars, even back then! I think the first car my parents bought that came with factory air was a brand new 1969 Plymouth Satellite.

Yes, there are still plenty of streets that have unbridged wash (arroyo) crossings. Invariably during the summer monsoons, someone will drive into one and get stuck, and have to be rescued. On rare instances someone is not so lucky and is swept away and drowned. For quite a few years now there has been a state "Stupid Motorist Law" that makes one responsible for the cost of one's rescue if one is stupid enough to go around a road barricades, enter a flooded wash crossing, and get stuck! The old dam picture got me to thinking about dams in the state (AZ) that one can still drive across. Of course there is Hoover, but that time is growing short with the construction of the monster bridge crossing that will bypass the dam. Construction is running a bit behind--there was a bad construction accident with at least one fatality that pushed the completion date back--but I think the new bridge is still scheduled for a 2010 completion. I believe the road over Davis Dam between Laughlin (NV) and Bullhead City (AZ) has been closed to traffic as well. A bridge replaced that crossing also. You could drive over Roosevelt Dam on Arizona SR188, just off the famous Apache Trail (AZ88) until about 1990 or so, on a one lane roadway no less! A very attractive bridge replaced that crossing, and then the dam was heightened and the roadway over the top removed. I think that leaves Parker Dam on the Colorado between AZ and CA as the only drivable dam with no plan for a bridge replacement.

Wow! That is really neat! Wonder how many early motorists hit that water, found it deeper than they expected, and stalled out? Of course, most '20s cars had higher ground clearance than today, didn't they? Still, I'll bet someone with a couple of horses could've made some $$ pulling stalled motorists (or those too timid to even try) across the dam apron through the water!

This will probably sound stupid, but I just checked out the gallery (first time). Did not see any way to post pictures on there, though. What did I miss? Never mind, I just figure it out. If anyone's interested, I just added two photos of the Tom Mix memorial marker to the gallery.

Well, I finally did the delayed US80/89 road trip north from Tucson today. Weather was clear and sunny, mid-80s, with quite a bit of wind. Did not go all the way to the old stretch between Gila Bend and Buckeye, however, which of course would have included the titular bridge of this thread. Have to save that for another trip up to PHX when I have more time to spare. What we did do today was to take I-10 to Picacho, then exit on AZ87 north through Coolidge (by the original 'Big House'--the Casa Grande Ruins National Monument), then followed AZ287 east to Florence, where I joined what had been US80/89. After strolling around downtown Florence for awhile (it was quite dead on a Sunday noon), we headed down old 80/89 (now signed as the second iteration of AZ79--the original state route 79 was constructed in the 1950s as part of a more direct route between Phoenix and Flagstaff. The original 79 ran from Cordes Junction up to Flagstaff and is now part of I-17, having lost it's state designation long ago. So, the "AZ79" moniker was available for reuse. But I digress...). And yes, we of course stopped at the Tom Mix memorial marker, just north of the Tom Mix Wash where the unfortunate Mr. Mix lost his life back in October 1940. What was new there since my last visit was the addition of three metal ramadas, each shading two picnic tables. The memorial is now the centerpiece of a full-blown roadside picnic area. I shot two photos of the marker, fully intended to post them here, only to be stymied by the inability to upload my IPhotos to this site. It keeps informing me that my uploads are two big, no matter how small I attempt to size them. Finally, I gave up in frustration. (Note: I later added the photos to the gallery. They uploaded there with no problem!) Anyway, the Tom Mix memorial marker is still 'alive and well' on the southbound side of old US80/89--the Pinal Pioneer Parkway--southeast of Florence, AZ!

Quick update: My 80 road jaunt has unfortunately been postponed. I was all set to hit the road this morning when, upon checking my tires, I found that one of the sidewalls is developing a crack. When I bought the Miata last April I figured I could get about another year out of the tires, but I guess I'll have to replace them a bit sooner than that. And it was a perfect late winter day for a 'top-down' cruise, too! Topped out about 70 this afternoon and stayed mostly overcast, so less chance of back-of-the-neck sunburn. Oh well...

Whew! Glad my Vibe's an automatic! I don't think there's too many out there with 'sticks'. I remember when I was car shopping that both of the local dealers had about 10 automatics for every 5-speed.

Auto or manual tranny? How many miles were on it when it blew? $3500...yikes! I guess the days of replacing a tranny for $600, like I did in 1992 on a 1982 Plymouth Gran Fury (slant six engine) are long gone...

Roll-up windows? How primitive! Actually, I kind of wish my Miata had roll-ups, rather than power. It would be nice to be able to roll down (or up) the passenger side window without turning the key on. Always wondered why some auto engineer never thought of power windows with a manual override. Yes, definitely consider the Vibe/Matrix. I picked the Vibe because a similarily-equipped Vibe was about $3K less than the equivalent Toyota version, at least back in '05. Also, I was trading in another Pontiac (I won't mention the model, but it was an '01 first-year version of the vehicle the auto press loved to hate!), so I figured that the GM dealer would give me more on the trade-in. At first I didn't care for the '09 redesign of both vehicles (since they're on the Corolla platform, when the Corolla changes, they do too), but it has grown on me. Not that I'm anywhere near being in the market for a new one. Mine's good for many years yet.

LOL! I think the actual plural of 'Matrix' is 'Matrices'?! The Vibe/Matrix are just fantastic little cars, period! Even though the auto press pretty much ignores them, at least "Consumer Reports" always gives them high marks. The joint GM/Toyota plant where they're made in Fremont CA is highly regarded as well. My '05 Vibe has been absolutely trouble-free from Day 1 (four years in June) and my local Pontiac/Cadillac/GMC/Saab dealer has been a great place to go for routine service. Yes, I'm one satisfied customer. But for my road trip, I'm still hoping to take my '99 Miata. Winter in Southern Arizona is 'top-down' time!

A little more to add to the Tom Mix car wreck death in 1940: The 'killed by suitcase to the head' story is true, so I have heard. Also heard that it wasn't quite a washed out bridge over the since-renamed "Tom Mix Wash" that caused the accident, but a bridge that was being replaced at the time of the crash. Apparently Tom was driving too fast (supposedly 100mph) to see the "Detour" sign before the bridge construction and kept on going. The 100mph figure is possible as he was driving a 1937 Cord 810, one of the fastest and most powerful prewar American autos, and the final glorious gasp of the dying Auburn-Cord-Duesenburg Indiana auto empire. Unfortunately, the braking and steering technology of the day was no match for the car's ferocious power, nor did it have any of today's basic safety features. So, poor ol' Tom was a goner. ...and this isn't too far off-topic, because it did happen on old US80 (which was also US89 at the time between Tucson and Phoenix), and not too far from the Gillespie Dam bridge! ...and as an update, the Weather Channel is now forecasting that Sunday will bring a rain shower respite, so the 'top-down' trip in the Miata on 80/89 may be a 'go' after all! And I did drive to work (in the Vibe, not the Miata) through snowflakes coming down in the predawn darkness this morning! It all had melted by the time I got home, though...

Just wanted to add a rather quirky trivia bit: The stretch of old US80 that includes the Gillespie Dam bridge is one of those rare stretches in which the westbound traffic was heading nearly due east, and vice-versa. I'm tentatively planning a trip next Sunday (weather permitting--after a stretch of 80+ degree days, it has turned cold and rainy with a good chance of SNOW here in Tucson on Tuesday!) up old US80/89 from Tucson through Florence (Tom Mix memorial/death site!) and Phoenix down to Gila Bend and then home on (boring) I-8/I-10. Haven't been over the old bridge in a good many years, and the post above makes me think that it may be now or never!

I second the US395 recommendation. It's a great drive all the way to Reno. But don't miss Bodie CA. It's probably the all-around best "real" ghost town in the whole USA (the best one I've been to, anyway), and as a CA state historic park, is relatively easy to get to (not far off of 395 north of Mono Lake) and is incredible well-preserved. I was there on New Year's Day about 15 years ago and it was simply an amazing place.